Residents of Clapton Terrace in Hackney, one of London DIY streets, are seen during their street party Photograph: Sustrans/James Thomson

Getting cars cars to slow down instead of racing through backstreet rat runs benefits everyone from cyclists to residents. But a windswept street on a November night in the East End of London is not the first place you'd expect to find inspiration for how to do that – not only cheaply but also with the total approval of the people who live there.

Clapton Terrace is one of 11 "DIY Streets", a nationwide project launched by sustainable transport charity Sustrans as a cheap solution to local traffic problems. By narrowing and raising sections of road to pavement level, planting trees and using street furniture and bollards, the scheme forces drivers to slow down by blurring the distinction between space dedicated to cars and pedestrians.

Two years ago locals were fed up as drivers were using their street as a shortcut to avoid a busy junction nearby. They resurrected their residents' group and got together to vote on their own DIY Street. Lyn Altass became what Sustrans calls a "community champion".

"We leafleted every house for ideas and 40% of people responded. Hackney council only gets 25% during elections," she says when I meet her. She points proudly to the new trees and new access to the green opposite, which means the road now looks more like an entrance to a park.

Residents described the street as previously being "an accident waiting to happen." By raising a section of road in the centre of the road to pavement height, traffic is forced to slow down. The road now feels a lot more spacious as two trees were added beside the road, communal wheelie bins replaced 64 individual bins, and a fence around the nearby green was removed. The site also uses Plantlocks – boxes of plants with bike-friendly bars – where residents can lock bikes.

"We were expecting a 20mph sign and we got all of this!" a local told me.

Altass says there are now fewer cars using the street, and those that do are travelling at slower speeds. But she also says the street's makeover has increased a sense of community.

"We all know more people on the terrace than we used to, we see each other at the bus stop and say 'Hi'. Somehow, we have got to sustain that. On Sunday, some of my neighbours were even out planting bulbs. Lots of people on the terrace have got bikes, and cyclists often use this street as an alternative because it is quieter than the main road."

The idea was inspired by the Dutch designer Hans Monderman, and the success of similar pedestrian priority schemes from European cities such as Copenhagen and Freiburg, to Portland, Oregon in the US. Now, across the UK, from Torquay to Manchester, a smattering of streets is undergoing transformation.

Monderman argued that cars have been allowed to dominate our streets, and we should be able to enjoy what should be a vital part of the urban landscape. Neighbours should use streets as an extension of their homes and get to know each other rather than being forced indoors by the traffic. And when local people get involved in these projects they also cost less to produce.

DIY Streets was piloted in Bristol's controversial St Werburghs redevelopment in 2004 when, after 18 months of decision-making and meetings, the road was made narrower with segregated cycle lanes and parking bays were replaced with boxes of plants. It was popular with residents and thanks to its low cost – £17,000 – the idea was extended.

Finlay McNab, DIY Streets' senior project officer, explains the scheme isn't just about making life better for cyclists: "Residents take ownership, so it becomes a public space not just for car traffic but for play and doing everything related to civic life. It gives residents the opportunity to design streets how they want and take ownership. That is part of the philosophy."